Using Social Media
American Red Cross – Cape Fear Chapter
January 27, 2011
What is Social Media?
• Social media are media
for social interaction,
using highly accessible
and scalable publishing
techniques.
• Social media use webbased technologies to
turn communication into
interactive dialogue.
Social Media Components
• Blogs- Blogger, Wordpress, Live Journal
• Social networking- Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace
• Micro-blogging- Jaiku, Twitter, Tumblr
• Wikis- Wikispaces, Pbworks, Wikimedia
• Video/Photo share- YouTube, Flikr, Photobucket, Vimeo
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Distinctions from industrial media
1. Reach – Ability to reach a global audience
2. Accessibility – Available to most at little or no cost
3. Usability – Most can operate, doesn’t usually require
special skills
4. Recency – No time lag, communication can be
instantaneous
5. Permanence – Content can be changed easily by
editing or through comment fields
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Benefits of Social Media
Advantages
Disadvantages
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Easily accessible
Increases brand awareness
Mechanism to share stories
Tools to promote campaigns,
events, etc.
Inexpensive
Interaction with supporters
Reach large and diverse
audiences
Quick response
Time consuming
Dependability on technology
Spam/Scams
Negative comments/posts
Can be impersonal
Why do we use Social Media?
• Philosophy: To execute our mission and engage supporters
– We use social media to help people prevent, prepare for and
respond to emergencies
• Goal: To create an empowered online community of Red Cross
supporters
Platforms the Cape Fear Chapter currently utilizes:
– Facebook (primary)
– Twitter*
– YouTube*
– Flicker*
*Linked to Facebook page
Website
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National Red Cross Social Media
• Facebook
• YouTube
• flickr
• Twitter
• Ammado
• Red Cross Blog
Should my organization create a page?
Things to think about
• Does your local/target audience use social media?
• Do you have the time and technology to update your
page with valuable content?
• Do you have the capacity or desire to interact with your
supporters on a daily basis?
• Can you offer content geared towards your
stakeholders?
• Do you have a clear goal in mind that social media will
help you achieve?
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“Less than half of the nonprofits had an online
donation system and less than half use social
networking tools like Facebook.”
-According to 127 responses from Dr. Laurie Paarlberg’s 2010 survey
of Cape Fear area nonprofit organizations.
Utilizing Facebook
Before you start a Facebook presence, it’s a good idea to:
• Create a personal Facebook profile
• Spend time figuring out how the platform works
• Learn the culture of Facebook
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Creating and Updating your Page
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Name your page after your
organization
Use your logo or other
recognizable image that represents
your organization as your page
picture
Invite people to “Like” your page
Link to your website and vice versa
Link with other social media outlets
Engage with fans
Post pictures, video, links
Create or add apps
Cape Fear Chapter Facebook Page
• National Donation Application
• Updated Posts
• Photo Albums
• Event Postings
• Insights
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Integrated Marketing Strategies
Further enhance your organization’s visibility and reach by
including social media links on:
– Printed and electronic publications and promotional
pieces
– Organization Website
– Web Ads and Banners
– Email Signatures
– E-Newsletters
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Cape Fear Chapter’s E-Newsletter
• Constant Contact email newsletter
• Sends to 5,000+ email address
• Promotes events, classes, chapter news and services
• Linked to social media networks
Industry
Red Cross*
Open Rate
24.3%
Non-profits** 20.0%
Bounce Rate
3.5%
5.9%
Click Through
13.8%
12.3%
*Cape Fear Chapter newsletters (6) in Nov., Dec. & Jan.
**According to Constant Contact industry averages
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Benefits of E-Newsletters
Advantages
Disadvantages
1. Relatively low cost of
fulfillment
2. Direct response medium
encourages immediate action
3. Faster campaign deployment
4. Ease of personalization
5. Options for testing
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6. Integration
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Deliverability
Renderability
Email response decay
Communications preferences
Resource intensive
Questions?
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www.facebook.com/ARCcapefear
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http://twitter.com/ARCCapeFear